Date Gone Wrong
by shana.rose
Summary: Tom met Sybil when she was on a bad date with another guy. Sparks instantly flew but when it's his turn to take Sybil out will it be the best date of their lives? Or the worst? Modern AU. Part II- Proposal Gone Wrong.
1. Chapter 1

**A/N: Hellooo! So I made this for this month's Rock the AU, first date edition~ I was really worried that I won't finished this before the end of the month but I somehow just made it! I like to thank gothamgirl28 for being such an angel and editing this for me. You're an absolute doll!**

* * *

Walking out of the building complex, Tom looked back up, vaguely wondering which window was hers. He shook his head and laughed to himself. She had been right. It had been the worst date, probably- no without a doubt, it was the worst date he had ever been on. He supposed that it made sense in a way. After all, they had met when she was on a bad first date.

* * *

_Tom walked over to the table plastering on a fake smile as he sized up his customers. The man checking his phone, with his slip back dark hair and obvious brand name suit, was obviously well off. Probably one of those financial type blokes or maybe a banker. The woman was, if he was completely honest, probably the most beautiful girl he'd ever seen. He internally sighed. Typical. Why did all the gorgeous girls only go out with guys who were loaded? With her dark curls hanging off of her shoulders, her luscious red lips, and her unfairly big blue eyes, she was easily the most stunning woman he had ever met in his life. "Hi I'm-"_

_The banker, he decided to call him, didn't even let him say his name before jumping in. Glaring up at him, the banker gave him a snarl as he snapped, "It's about damn time. Now tell me, why isn't that dish with lobster on the menu tonight?"_

_The dark hair beauty rolled her eyes behind her menu which made Tom smile. "I'm sorry, sir. Are you talking about the grilled Lobster Tails with Tarragon-Lemon Vinaigrette? I'm afraid that dish was last week's special. Might I recommend-"_

_The banker looked unfazed by this as he took out his phone again and started texting. "Yes, that's it. We'll have that."_

_Tom smiled politely and said, "I'm sorry sir, but that dish isn't available tonight."_

_The man looked up with an ugly scowl on his mug. "I don't care if it's not on the menu tonight! That's what we're getting you stupid mick!"_

_Tom would have rolled his eyes if the dark haired beauty hadn't started speaking. "Larry!" She hissed, "First off, apologize or I swear I'll walk out that door this instant!" She was glaring daggers at the banker named Larry, which if you asked him was definitely a wanker's name. Her eyes were just daring him to refuse her demand._

_Larry threw his head back as if asking god why him, before muttering out a halfhearted apology. _

_She smiled, but it was clear she was anything but happy. "Second, I know you are used to throwing your weight around like a hotshot, but stop. Contrary to what you might think, it's not attractive. If anything, it's a major turnoff. Third, if I wanted the lobster tails I would have ordered it myself, so please refrain from ordering for me, thank you. And finally," she turned towards him now, staring right into his eyes and smiled widely. "Hi I really sorry about all that just now..."_

_He smiled, "Tom." The last rays of the sun hit her eyes showing him the exact shade of her eyes, like the clouds right before a storm hits, as she said, "Sybil."_

_The rest of the date, from his point of view at least, did not go any better. It was clear that this was the last place she wanted to be. _

_He had a minute before one of his tables' food came out, so he decided to slip out the back for a minute for some air. He hadn't expected to see her there against the wall with her eyes closed._

"_Are you alright miss?"_

_She jumped and he felt horrible for surprising her. "Sorry," he quickly said._

_The dark haired beauty laughed sweetly. "Don't worry about it."_

_They stood a foot apart in a surprisingly comfortable silence. _

"_Have you ever ditched someone you were on a date with?" she asked suddenly._

_Tom laughed, "Oh that bad, eh?"_

_Sybil giggled before reaching over and giving him a light push. "Oh please like you don't know!"_

_He nodded. Tom opened his mouth and then thinking better of it, closed it. But apparently, she had been looking at him because she had curiosity written all over her face. "What?"_

_He forced a smile on his face as he said nothing._

"_Come on, tell me."_

_He sighed, knowing he shouldn't ask, but being unable to stop himself. "Why did you say yes?"_

_She raised an eyebrow. "Yes to what?"_

_Staring straight into her eyes, he asked, "Why did you say yes to going out with that prick?"_

"_Oh!" Sybil looked at him and then up at the moon. Staying silent for a moment before answering. "Larry is an old friend of the family. He's always had a thing for me, but I've always thought him a complete arse. He's made it clear in the past that he was interested but I've always said no. But about a month ago he decided that it was time, and this is a direct quote, 'We should stop pretending and just settle down together already.'" She rolled her eyes here. "He basically stalked me for the rest of the month. Kept showing up at my apartment with flowers and at my work, refusing to leave and following me home. It was getting absolutely ridiculous and frankly a little creepy. I told him to stop, but he refused until I went out with him. He promised me that if I just went on one date with him he'd stopped following me around and he'd leave me alone for good."_

_He snorted. "Oh man what a right prize he is."_

_She giggled. "Oh definitely. How can I not want to settle down with him?"_

"_But seriously, that's pretty creepy," he said shaking his head in horror. "Why didn't you just call the cops?"_

_Sighing, Sybil replied, "Like I said, his parents are old friends of the family. His dad and my dad went to Uni together and his dad is actually my eldest sister's godfather. Larry's parents are actually very nice people. I honestly don't know how he became such a prick."_

_Tom had to go back in at that point, but at the end of the night when he was picking up the check, he had found a business card with the name Dr. Sybil Crawley written on it and her cell number scribbled on the back._

_He called her the instant he got off his shift._

* * *

Tom took a deep breath before knocking on the door. He heard something heavy fall and a string of colorful words. It made him smile.

Sybil opened the door with her pinky finger in her mouth. He smiled amusingly while saying nothing. She laughed. "I just dropped one of my medical books on my finger while I was looking for my shoes." Moving away from the door she called behind her for him to come in.

He stepped in, looking around the flat. He saw family photos hanging around the place. She had a nice place, big and roomy but very cozy.

"You have a nice flat," Tom said as he sat on her couch.

"Thanks!" Sybil called out from another room, most likely her bedroom.

"Is this just yours or...?"

She walked back into the room, kneeling down to look under the table. "No, I have a flatmate actually, Gwen." She moved back up glancing around the room. Smiling, she said, "We've been best mates since we were little."

"That must be fun. Living with your best mate."

She stood up looking around, hands on her hips as she bit on her lip, trying to figure out where her shoes were. Sybil shrugged. "It can be."

Standing up, Tom walked across the room, picking up some heels. "These it?"

"Yes!" Walking over, she pulled them out of his hands. "I don't know how I could have missed them."

Quickly slipping on her shoes, she grabbed her purse off the table. "So where are we eating?"

Walking out of the flat, he said, "I heard about this Italian place the other day at the garage I work at. It's only a few minute walk from here. Is that okay?"

Locking the door, Sybil grinned. "Sounds good to me. Besides, a little walking never hurt anyone."

* * *

"So you have three jobs?" Sybil asked as they walked down the street.

Tom nodded. "Yeah. I work at a garage during the mornings, wait on a table a couple nights during the week, and I've been writing some articles for a couple of papers."

"That must be utterly exhausting. I come home from work and I'm ready to drop dead. I can't imagine what it must be like working three!"

He shrugged. "It's not so bad. Working at a hospital must be ten times worst."

Sybil smiled at him from the corner of her eye. "It's really not so bad. I mean-Shit!" It was at this exact moment that her left heel broke off.

Tom placed his hand on her shoulder. "What happened?"

She groaned as she moved her hand onto his arm, and took off her heel. "I can't believe it! My heel just snapped off."

Tom frowned and replied, "Do you want to head back to your place and fix it or something?"

Sybil shook her head. "No, we're almost at the restaurant. Let's just go." Taking off her other shoe, she pulled and pulled on the other heel until it snapped off. "There." She grinned cheerfully exclaimed, "Now they're flats!"

He couldn't stop laughing.

* * *

When they got to the restaurant there was a line. The hostess told them the wait would only be about five minutes so they agreed that they might as well wait. They waited in line for thirty minutes.

As soon as they sat in their booth, they both order something to drink. Tom ordered a Guinness while Sybil choose a Piña Colada. She teased him about getting a Guinness. "Really Tom that's _sooo_ stereotypical!" She was laughing, when the last person he wants to see walks over to their table.

"Hi Tommy," Edna said in that over the top pouty way that for some reason that he will never understand girls actually think guys like. She then tried to sit down next to him, or rather in his lap.

He blocked her, but when he looked back at Sybil, he saw that the damage had been done and he internally groaned.

"Hi Edna. Look I'd love to chat," he doesn't actually. He wants her as far away as possible, "but as you can see I'm on a date."

Despite him telling her he was on a date and glaring at her, she didn't move. In fact, she ignored the second half of his sentence.

"Why talk later when we could talk now." Edna said, trying to squeezing his hand, but he pulls away.

"Edna, please leave!" He hissed. Tom's racking his brain for a way to get her to leave when Sybil's drink falls all over the back of her skirt.

For a split-second, he could see a smirk on her face before Edna shrieked and jumped off the table.

"Oh gosh. I'm so sorry. I'm just such a klutz!" Sybil said with a big smile on her face. Edna glared at her before looking at him, as if waiting for him to do or say something. So he did. "Bye Edna."

Edna stomped away. Tom and Sybil looked at each for a moment before laughing.

"Christ, I can't believe that actually happened!" Tom said shaking his head.

Sybil nodded before reaching over and taking a sip of his Guinness. She made a face and yet she took another.

Swallowing, she looked up and raised an eyebrow, "Soooo..."

Tom winced. He knew what he was about to say wouldn't sound good. "Alright. So have you ever had one of those days where it feels like your life is in the crapper?"

She nodded.

Licking his lips, he continued. "Right well my solution was to get utterly and completely trashed. So trashed that I-well, I met some random girl at a bar and kind of..."

"You slept with her." She said looking down at his drink and at her hands wrapped around the glass.

Grimacing, he quietly said yes.

They were quiet, neither one looking at each other. The longer the silence the more he hated Edna for coming over. Hated her for ruining things with the most amazing woman he'd ever met.

Suddenly, Sybil broke the silence. "When?"

He jerked his head up. "What?"

"When did the two of you sleep together?" Sybil asked calmly, still looking at his glass.

He winced. "Two months ago, but I swear I'm not that kind of guy. It was just that once and I felt so bad afterwards. Like I used her for her body. And I hated that so I asked her out to dinner hoping that, you know, we might actually have something in common, but we didn't. We had absolutely nothing in common."

He was hoping against hope that Sybil wasn't going to just walk off. She looked up, and for a second he thought he was dreaming when she smiled, albeit weakly.

"Okay."

"Okay?" He asked, letting out a breath that he didn't even though he was holding. "You're sure?"

Sybil nodded. "Yeah. I mean, don't get me wrong, it's not the kind of thing you want to learn on a first date, but it was obvious earlier that you weren't interested, and equally obvious by her reaction that the two of you weren't together."

"But you believe me?"

Sybil nodded. "Yes. I don't know why I do when we've only known each other for about three days, but I do. You don't seem like the type that sleeps around, but," she paused placing her elbows on the table and lacing her fingers before putting her chin on her hands. "Just in case you are. I'm letting you know now that I don't sleep with blokes until at least after the first month. No exceptions."

He sighed happily, not caring that he had to wait a month to sleep with her, just so very relieved that she was still interested in him. "I can respect that, especially after what I just told you."

Sybil smiled at him and Tom smiled back. He wasn't sure how long they were smiling at each other when their food arrived.

* * *

They had stay at the restaurant for almost three hours eating and talking. There were two horrible incidents when the man at the table next to them choked. Sybil gave him the Heimlich, resulting with the meatball stuck in the man's throat sitting him in square in the face and the waitress accidentally knocked Sybil's next drink all over her shoes. Despite that, they were having a lovely time. They had a lot of common; a love of politics, of old books, and they were both HUGE Doctor Who fans. They were talking about Game of Thrones, both the books and the TV series, when their waitress came over.

"Sir, your card has been declined."

Tom frowned. He had just put some money into his account that morning. "Can you run it again? There shouldn't be any problems with that card."

The waitress smiled sadly. "I'm sorry sir, but I did. Several times."

His cheeks felt hot as he reached for his wallet. He knew he didn't have much cash on him, but he hoped he had enough to pay for dinner.

Suddenly, he felt a hand on his arm. "It's okay, Tom. I got it." Before he could protest, Sybil had already given their waitress her card.

"I'm sorry. I swear, I literally just put some money in my account this morning."

Moving her hand down to his hand, she squeezed it. "Really Tom it's okay. You can always pay for the next date."

Tom grinned. Squeezing her hand back he replied, "So there's is going to be a second date, eh?"

Sybil laughed sweetly and the sound made Tom's head soar. "Definitely."

* * *

Tom called the card company and it turned out someone had stolen his identity. He was most likely going to spend all of tomorrow on his mobile cancelling his card and going through all the purchases made on his card in the last few days.

Watching as she carefully stepped over a puddle, Tom couldn't help the grin that seemed to be stuck to his face.

She narrowed her eyes jokingly at him, which made him laugh outright. Sybil rolled her eyes, but she was smiling as well. Shaking his head he shrugged. "At least we beat the rain, right?"

Humming her agreement, they were about to cross the street when a car drove right into a rather large puddle spraying water on them.

"Shit!" Tom swore as the water hit him. Looking down, it seemed that most of the water had fallen on his head and on his shoes, miraculously missing his clothes. Unfortunately, the exact opposite seemed to happen to Sybil. Her cream dress was soaked.

Sybil's eyes were wide and her mouth was in the perfect O shape. Looking over at Tom, she threw her head back and laughed. Watching her laugh and laugh, Tom couldn't help but chuckle. Slipping off his jacket, he placed it over her shoulders.

Shaking her head, Sybil slipped her hand into his. "I'm starting to think that we're cursed."

Tom squeezed her hand back, ready to make a joke out of their situation to keep everything light when his shoulder accidentally bumped into someone walking past. Tom whipped his head around. "Oh I'm sorr-"

"Sybil?"

Tom's mouth stood slightly open as he looked at Sybil's date from the other night _Larry_.

Sybil stiffened, and she felt frozen to her spot. Taking a deep breath, Sybil pulled on a fake smile and some fake cheer. "Larry! Um hi. How's your day been going so far?"

Larry looked at them, his eyes moving from the Tom's jacket over her shoulders and down to their hands that were still intertwined. "Well, seeing as my_ girlfriend_ is out on a date with another man, I would say it's going absolutely peachy!" he snarled as he eyed Tom suspiciously, recognizing him, but not remembering where he had seen him before.

Sybil groaned. "Larry we went on one date! That does not make me your girlfriend!"

Larry snorted, before mumbling, "Whatever." He had turned around when he heard Sybil say, "I'm really sorry about that Tom." He stopped and swerved back towards them, looking straight at Tom again but this time remember who he was before turning back at Sybil and glaring at her. "For god's sake Sybil! The waiter? The fucking waiter?! You're on a bloody date with the bloke who was our waiter on our date!?"

Tom winced, realizing that in retrospect it did look a bit bad, and if Larry wasn't such a tool, he might actually had felt bad for him.

"But I suppose I shouldn't be surprise to find you shagging this waste of space. After all, you've always been rather a classless whore."

The next thing Tom knew, his fist was slamming into the wanker nose. Hard.

Larry tumbled back reaching up and covering his nose with his hand. "FUCK!" Glaring up at Tom, he yelled, "How dare you! I'll get you for this!"

Sybil moved in front of Tom, glaring harshly at him before hissing out. "Oh no you won't! If you do I'll tell the cops that you've been stalking me for the past month, forced me to go out with you, and then provoked my date when I wouldn't go back out with you."

Larry's face paled. He scanned her face for anything that would suggest she was bluffing, but when he found none, he gave them a nasty look before walking away.

Rubbing her face, Sybil let out a sigh. She peeked at Tom through her fingers, smiling sheepishly.

Taking a step closer to her, he slowly reached up and pulled her hands down. With both her hands in his, he lightly rubbed his thumbs over her knuckles. "I'm sorry. I shouldn't have hit him."

Sybil shook her head. "Don't apologize. He's an arse. He absolutely one hundred percent deserved it." Smiling weakly, she asked, "I know we were going to get ice cream but can you take me home instead? I'm feeling a bit tired after all that."

Smiling softly, he nodded. As they began walking towards her apartment, Sybil wrapped her arm more fully against his, placing her left hand on his elbow before leaning her head against his shoulder.

They stayed like that for the rest of the walk home, Sybil lost in thought while Tom softly smiled as he felt the weight of her head against his shoulder. Reaching the front of her door, Sybil separated from him.

"Well..." Tom said, not sure what to say next.

Sybil smiled and not for the first time that night he thought how beautiful she looked when she smiled. "Well," she laughed. "That was without a doubt the worst date I have ever been on."

Tom could feel his heart drop to the ground. Had she changed her mind about the second date?

Taking two steps forward so that she was mere inches away from him, she whispered, "But it was also one of the best dates I've ever been on." With that, she leaned up and pressed her lips against his in one of the best kisses of all time.

He honestly couldn't tell you how long they stood there kissing or when his arms had moved around her waist. Breathing heavily, he closed his eyes and rubbed his nose against her before leaning down and pecking her on the lips.

Sybil giggled, as he whispered, "Maybe we're not so cursed after all."

* * *

Walking out of the building complex, Tom looked back up, vaguely wondering which window was hers. He shook his head and laughed to himself. She had been right. It had been the worst date, probably- no without a doubt it was the worst date he had ever been on. He supposed that it made sense in a way, after all they had met when she was on a bad first date.

But looking up again, this time at the stars, he knew in his gut that this woman, the dark haired beauty Sybil, was the one.


	2. The Proposal

**A?N: Hey guys! When I heard that this month's Rock the AU was America the plot bunnies kept coming back to this story. Enjoy :)**

* * *

"Hun, I'm hopping into the shower."

Tom looked up from his comfy spot on the hotel room bed at his stunning girlfriend of six months. Putting his book down, he waggled his eyebrows as he asked, "Is that an invitation?"

Sybil threw her head back and laughed. "Seeing as we're supposed to be at Grandmamma's in half an hour, not today."

Tom jokingly pouted making Sybil smile widely as she leaned over and kissed him on the cheek before walking into the bathroom.

It was only after he heard the showerhead start and he was sure she wouldn't run out to grab something she forgot that he went to his suitcase. Making sure to open the suitcase on the other side of the room from the bathroom, Tom moved the sock he stuffed in one of his loafers and carefully pulled out a small black box.

Opening the box, Tom was glad that he decided to get the ring polished before their vacation started.

Tom sighed. Their vacation was almost over and he still hadn't worked up the nerve to ask her. Closing the case, he held the ring box tightly before slipping it into his pocket. "Today."

* * *

Sybil grinned as her Grandmamma placed another record on the gramophone.

Martha turned and smirked, "Oh hush dear. I'm an old soul."

"I thought you liked trying new things, Martha," Tom said cheekily from his seat on the sofa next to Sybil. He had one arm slung over Sybil's back while the other traced the outline of the small box through the material of his trousers.

Martha had mirth in her eyes as she said, "Sonny boy, I'm always up for something new."

They all laughed and Tom only laughed harder when Sybil asked, "Should I leave you two alone?"

"Don't worry my dear. I wouldn't dream of stealing your man," Martha winked at them as she added, "He wouldn't be able to keep up with little old me."

Sybil and Tom couldn't help chuckling, with Tom agreeing that Martha was probably right.

As the next tune began, Sybil couldn't help smiling softly at her grandmamma and then at Tom. "This was their song; Grandmamma and Granddad's."

Tom reached out for her hand and they moved off the couch to the middle of the room.

With one hand around her waist and the other holding her hand, his eyes softened as he looked at her. Dancing with her to her grandparents' song, Tom couldn't think of a more perfect moment to finally ask her the question he had been wanting to ask her all week.

Tom squeezed her hand, taking a deep breath, he had his speech on the tip of his tongue, prepared to get down on one knee, when he felt Martha's hand on his shoulder.

"Dearie do you mind if I steal Tom for a minute? It's been a long time since I've danced to this song."

"Of course, Grandmamma." Kissing him on the cheek, Sybil slowly let Tom go.

Not even a minute into the dance Tom nearly jumped out of his skin in surprise when Martha's hands wandered down and squeezed his arse.

Sybil laughed so hard she fell off the sofa.

* * *

Tom smiled as Sybil leaned down to smell a batch of flowers in Central Park. After an eventful lunch with Martha, Sybil and Tom had decided to spend the afternoon walking through Central Park. With the sun high in the air and the gentle breeze wafting, it seemed like the perfect day to walk around the park and an even better time to propose.

For the past two hours, Tom had tried to find the right moment, one that had felt as special as when they were dancing, but so far no moment could compare.

Smiling as he felt Sybil's hand slip back into his, he tugged her closer and kissed her forehead. Seeing an ice cream cart nearby he asked, "Want to share a scoop of ice cream?"

Sybil giggled. "Are you forgetting who you're talking to?"

Tom chuckled along with her. "Must have if I actually thought you would share." It always amused Tom how Sybil would usually be so willing to share anything and everything with him but when it came to _her_ ice cream she could be so territorial.

Squeezing her hand, he said, "How about I get our ice creams while you find us somewhere to sit, eh?"

"Sounds like a plan."

"Mint Chocolate Chip right?" She nodded. "If they don't have it, I'll take chocolate though."

Nodding, Tom waited the short period of time in line with his hand in his pocket thumbing the small black box. He tried to remind himself that he still had plenty of hours in the day to do this.

Paying for their ice creams, Tom scanned his horizon his eyes finding her lounging on a nearby fountain.

Tom couldn't help but think how lovely she looked as the breeze passed through her hair. The tendrils of her curls floated in the air before she tucked the air back behind her ear, the fingers on her left hand skidding across the surface of the water. He passed her the ice cream. He couldn't help but smile as her eyes fluttered close after that first bite.

Listening to the steady flow of water springing out into the pool beneath, Tom laughed.

"What's so funny?" Sybil said suspiciously at his too wide grin.

"You have ice cream all over your face."

"Oh god really?" she laughed as she wiped some of it off.

"I don't know how, but you got some above your eyebrow." Chuckling, Tom reached up and wiped it off. Sybil laughed harder. "You're never going to let me forget this are you?"

"Never," he whispered as he cupped her cheek. Kissing her nose, he moved his other hand to his pocket. Taking a deep breath, he wrapped his fingers around the box when out of nowhere a golden retriever jumped right on him, taking him by surprise, and knocked him into the fountain.

As Tom and the dog, who was licking his face, sat in the pool of the fountain, he could hear the dog's owner apologizing as she ran over. All Tom could do was sigh as he placed the ring box back into his pocket.

* * *

"Mmmm," Sybil moaned as she took another bite of her steak entrée.

Chuckling, Tom asked, "Should I leave the two of you alone?"

A little pink graced her cheeks only making Tom grin wider. Raising an eyebrow, she challenged back, "If I say yes, will I find you in the arms of my Grandmamma?"

Trying to keep a straight face, but failing miserably, Tom said, "Oh without a doubt," before they both burst out in laughter.

Shaking her head, Sybil licked her lips before asking Tom what else he wanted to do before they headed back home in a few days.

"I don't know." Tom shrugged, "What would you like?"

"Oh come on! There must be something. This is your first trip to New York City and there's so much we haven't done yet."

Nudging his foot against the side of her ankle, he teased, "I wouldn't say that. If anything, I would say we've done _it_ a lot."

"Tom!" she whispered loudly as her face turned a lovely shade of red.

"What?" he smirked. Changing his features into mock surprise, he added, "Oooh I thought you meant-"

Grinning, she said, "Sure you did."

Listening to her cheek, Tom was reminded of the easy relationship the two had. How easily they could banter with each other and how he hoped that aspect of their relationship would never change.

His fingers trace the outline of the box once more. Staring into her eyes, he smiled softly as he said, "I love you."

"I love you too," Sybil said before taking another bite of her entrée.

Licking his lips nervously, Tom glanced down at the small box in his pocket before looking up at Sybil. The words were on the tip of his tongue when he saw an odd look on her face. "Sybil? Sybil are you okay?"

Watching her face pale, Sybil started choking violently, thumping at her chest as she stuttered out the word "Choking."

Rushing over to the other side of the table, Tom was glad that Sybil taught him the Heimlich maneuver.

* * *

After Sybil's small brush with death, Tom had wanted to go back to the hotel. Stubborn as always, she insisted that they not let it ruin their night. After much probing, Tom admitted he would like to see what all the fuss was about the Empire State building.

After an hour in line, Tom and Sybil finally made it to the top. "So what do you think?"

Tom moved his eyes away from the sight in front of him to look at Sybil, a smile curling on his face as wind blew her hair back. "Not bad."

Shaking her head in mock exaggeration, Sybil took a step closer to Tom and pressed herself against his side, laying her head against his shoulder as she looked at the skyline.

Staring out at the bright skyline in front of them, he wasn't sure how long they stood there staring and not talking, but he felt at ease. The silence was not awkward, it was the opposite really. Suddenly, he remembered Sybil once telling him that she never felt so comfortable with anyone in her life. That words were not needed.

When he was with her, he felt as if that sometimes just being able to be around her was all he needed.

He knew that it was a bit cliché to do this here on the Empire State Building, but he needed her to know how right everything felt when he was with her.

Moving his hand away from her waist, he bent down on one knee.

"YES! YES I WILL MARRY YOU!"

Whipping his head to his right, he watched as the couple next to them started kissing only to stop to slip the ring on the woman's finger.

Cursing internally, Tom quickly pretended to tie his shoe laces.

* * *

His fingers touched the ring box for what felt like the millionth time that day. He sighed as he walked back into the hotel with the local shop bag in his left hand. He needed that walk and he vaguely wondered what Sybil was watching on the telly.

The day hadn't gone anyway near how he hoped it would and as he got into the lift he couldn't help but think that maybe he was trying too hard. Maybe it was a sign; a sign that they were not there yet.

As the lift doors opened on their floor, Tom decided to put the ring back into its hiding place. It had only been six months after all and while Tom knew she was the only woman for him, Sybil might not be ready for such a commitment.

Sliding the keycard into the lock, Tom opened the door to a pitch black room save for candles. As his eyes followed the path of the candles, they landed on Sybil. Beautiful Sybil.

He opened his mouth but she spoke before he could ask the question. "Tom we've been together for what? Six months now?"

He nodded, watching as she slowly moved closer. Biting her lip, she looked at her hands as she said, "I've been doing a lot of thinking of late and…"

She was only a few steps away when he asked, "And?"

Standing right in front of him, Sybil took his hands into hers, rubbing the soft delicate pads of her thumbs against his own calloused hands. "And I've realized just how important you are to me. How essential you are to my happiness and how these past six months have been the best months of my life and I don't want it to ever end."

Biting her lip once more, she finally looked up again into his eyes. Her eyes were filled with warmth and love as she said, "So what I'm asking is… Tom Branson will you marry me?"

A smile grew on his face as he pulled his hand away and into his pocket. Tom chuckled as he pulled out the small black box and she gasped. "Sybil Crawley, you've taken the words right out of my mouth."

Cupping her face with his other hand, he tilted his head down to kiss her, mouthing the word yes across her lips.


End file.
